as in mainly
for the most part
our video collection consists chiefly of comedies, but we have a few horror movies
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Recent Examples of chiefly
This level of intimacy is chiefly reserved for romantic partners and spouses — partnerships where sharing finances is essential to the relationship.
—
Essence, 5 Sep. 2025
The specialty retailer’s chief financial officer, Robert Ball, said Abercrombie has seen about $5 million in adverse impact from tariffs during the second quarter, chiefly manifested in the cost of sales, and expects $90 million net impact from tariffs for the year.
—Kate Nishimura, Sourcing Journal, 4 Sep. 2025
The Iranian contribution was leveraging the R&D from elsewhere in Iran’s area of operations—chiefly Lebanon—and multiplying the Iraqis’ lethality.
—Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 2 Sep. 2025
For a generation of fans, Chance is chiefly known as a wife guy who made a whole album about being a wife guy.
—Brady Brickner-Wood, New Yorker, 20 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for chiefly
Essence, 5 Sep. 2025
The specialty retailer’s chief financial officer, Robert Ball, said Abercrombie has seen about $5 million in adverse impact from tariffs during the second quarter, chiefly manifested in the cost of sales, and expects $90 million net impact from tariffs for the year.
—Kate Nishimura, Sourcing Journal, 4 Sep. 2025
The Iranian contribution was leveraging the R&D from elsewhere in Iran’s area of operations—chiefly Lebanon—and multiplying the Iraqis’ lethality.
—Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 2 Sep. 2025
For a generation of fans, Chance is chiefly known as a wife guy who made a whole album about being a wife guy.
—Brady Brickner-Wood, New Yorker, 20 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for chiefly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for chiefly
Adverb
-
In November and December, the above normal fire risk is mainly confined to southern California.—
Doyle Rice,
USA Today,
14 Sep. 2025
-
People mainly wanna talk to me about that.—
Brian Hiatt,
Rolling Stone,
13 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
But consumers can now tap $3,500 in annual benefits, according to American Express, mostly in the form of credits offsetting purchases made on the card, more than twice the previous level.—
Hugh Son,
CNBC,
18 Sep. 2025
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Other than the online diary, Gendron reportedly received weapons tips in another Discord server where members mostly discussed guns and tactical gear.—
Mia Cathell,
The Washington Examiner,
18 Sep. 2025
Adverb
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At the time of the girls' disappearance, Decker was living primarily out of his pickup truck, and occasionally at motels and campgrounds, according to police.—
Kelli Arseneau,
jsonline.com,
19 Sep. 2025
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In September 2025, the Coinbase Institute published an analysis on stablecoins, noting that tokens, such as Tether’s USDT and Circle’s USDC, are used primarily for cross-border payments, onchain finance, as a store of value, and as an efficient domestic payment system.—
Becca Bratcher,
Forbes.com,
19 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
These appeals largely fell on deaf ears, however, with most Americans more focused on the COVID-19 pandemic and nail-biting 2020 elections than a conflict few had any understanding of.—
Brady Knox,
The Washington Examiner,
21 Sep. 2025
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Free speech advocates argue age verification laws infringe on First Amendment rights, and are largely ineffective in restricting access to adult content.—
Arpan Lobo,
Freep.com,
20 Sep. 2025
Adverb
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This rising use of AI has principally been spurred by the evolving advances and widespread adoption of generative AI.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
19 Sep. 2025
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The clip principally focuses on Jeremy Allen White as Springsteen and Jeremy Strong as Springsteen’s manager, Jon Landau.—
Walden Green,
Pitchfork,
15 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
The separate but similar episodes have sparked a firestorm of accusations, predominantly from Democrats, that Trump and allies are using the federal government to infringe on free speech.—
Ramsey Touchberry,
The Washington Examiner,
19 Sep. 2025
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Advertisement Not that the show is entirely, or even predominantly, a work of high-minded political critique.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
19 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Chiefly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/chiefly. Accessed 21 Sep. 2025.
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